


there's always a catch

by oownow



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, Oneshot, why am i like this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-12
Updated: 2016-10-12
Packaged: 2018-08-22 01:25:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8267608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oownow/pseuds/oownow
Summary: Wonwoo really can't tell if his routine trip to the bar took a turn for better or for worse.





	

There was always something about treating himself to the occasional beer (or two) at his local bar that Wonwoo really came to appreciate. He always figured it was because it offered him some much needed downtime after work and school-- making a living at a doggy day care and going to college may sound fun and all but one person can only handle so much dog shit and essays at once, truth be told.

 

 

Though on this particular Saturday night, Wonwoo really comes to realize that any chance of being alone is what he's been craving for the most. Maybe it was the whole relaxed ambience of the place that pushed Wonwoo to finally come to. Or maybe, just maybe... it was the way a certain someone across the counter was most definitely taking his sweet time eyeing him in what Wonwoo felt like the longest most uncomfortably one-sided staring competition in his entire god damn life.

 

 

 _What the fuck_ , Wonwoo thinks to himself, with his not-so-secret admirer practically boring holes into the side of his skull. Wonwoo has no idea what to make of the situation, and so, in attempt to calm his nerves, busies himself with the perspiration from his bottle; focuses on the little droplets that cascade down the side and form a pool around the bottom of his beer. However, nothing puts him at ease and Wonwoo is practically on the edge of his seat, anxiety peaking.

 

 

Wonwoo senses the stranger with a staring problem shifting closer to his general direction and his breath hitches. He doesn't even have to glance at the guy's face to know he's probably some 40 year old male cougar on the hunt for his next victim.

 

 

 _Wait, what would a male cougar be called? A manther?,_ Wonwoo stifles his own laughter _. God, that was hilarious. I'm a fucking geniu--_

 

 

"What's so funny, sweetheart?"

 

 

Wonwoo's head automatically swivels to face the owner of the voice, ( _this_ _guy_ _did_  not _just call me sweetheart)_ andhis breath hitches for the second time that night, but for an entirely different reason.

 

 

Sitting in the seat next to his is a man Wonwoo is pretty sure a gay guy like himself would've designed in a laboratory, and Wonwoo prays to whatever's up there that it isn't any thanks to beer vision.

 

 

"I uh... I was just, uh..." Wonwoo fumbles on his words and catches himself _staring_. Oh, how the tables have turned.

 

 

Mr. Long Tan and Handsome chuckles. He's clad in a simple, white button down shirt (sleeves cuffed mid-forearm just how Wonwoo likes it) with black slacks and a loose tie to go with his sleek suit that's slung over his left shoulder. He's got jet black hair that's tousled in all the right ways after a long day of being worn with product, and sun-kissed skin of the gods. Wonwoo swears his glasses are starting to fog up. "You're so cute when you're flustered. Mind if I buy you a drink?"

 

 

Wonwoo's stomach swaps places with his heart and he wonders if he should invest in Pampers in advance for any future possible moments wherein he feels like he's about to shit out his entrails right through his denim jeans. He doesn't even know what excites him more: the fact that any young, handsome man sporting an outfit like that is bound to be some eccentric billionaire, or the fact that eccentric billionaires are eccentric billionaires with expensive eccentric billionaire taste.

 

 

 _Okay_ , Wonwoo concedes his own overreacting, _a billionaire is a bit of a stretch_. Especially considering the actual quality of bar they were currently in, but he's pretty sure anyone can agree that the dude looks loaded.

 

 

Wonwoo makes it a point to regulate his breathing and shoots a smile toward his pursuer. "I don't see why not..." Wonwoo trails off, expecting for the stranger to finish his sentence with a name.

 

 

Said pursuer shoots a smile back. A real genuine, real toothy smile that makes Wonwoo melt into his seat. "Mingyu. Kim Mingyu. And good! That's what I like to hear..." Mingyu trails off in the same fashion.

 

 

"Wonwoo. Jeon Wonwoo."

 

 

"Wonwoo," Mingyu repeats it back to him, as if testing out the waters. "I like it." Wonwoo's heart does a flip and makes a mental note to thank his parents for his onomatopoeia of a name later. _Visual Dream Tree over here likes it._

 

 

While he waits for Wonwoo to finish his current beer, Mingyu initiates the small talk. Wonwoo is intrigued by everything about him-- his love for cooking and taking care of people; his apparent passion for dogs (Wonwoo agrees wholeheartedly and gets a kick out of the way Mingyu's face lights up.

 

 

"I figured you'd be more of a cat person?" Mingyu says, question coming out more like a statement.

 

 

"I get that a lot," Wonwoo laughs.)

 

 

At one point Wonwoo asks what exactly it is that Mingyu does for a living, but Mingyu brushes it off, saying he'd rather keep work off his mind especially when he's "done with talking about myself. I wanna know more about you, Wonwoo." This line alone makes Wonwoo wanna squeal (not like a deep voice like his would allow him to anyway), and he doesn't even think twice about what could have been a real easy answer to a real easy question. He dismisses it even further when he admits to himself that _yeah, I wouldn't wanna talk about what I do for a living right now, either_.

 

 

Mingyu watches Wonwoo down the last of his drink and waves the bartender over. "What can I get for you?" the man behind the counter asks as he polishes a glass. _Why do bartenders always seem to do that when they're called over anyway? Polish glasses as if they weren't already clean?_

 

 

_...You know what, nevermind._

 

 

Any nervous feelings Wonwoo previously had were long gone now. Ambition takes over, and Wonwoo takes this as his golden opportunity to order something he's only ever dreamed of ordering. _Anything under four bucks is a cheap pool of booze_. As if Wonwoo doesn't regularly order at said price. _Anything that requires more than a five-spot better give me a happy ending._ "Yeah, can I get a Blackberry Margari--"

 

 

"WOOOAAAH THERE BUCKO," Mingyu slices the air in front of a startled Wonwoo, both physically and metaphorically cutting him off. He clears his throat and fixes the already loosened tie around his neck. "Easy there... I mean, you're cute, _but, like_..."

 

 

The bartender stops polishing.

 

 

There are currently two things to be bothered about: the supposedly rich Mingyu's inability to pay for a drink he offered in the first place, and how Wonwoo is _pretty damn sure_ Mingyu's about to finish his sentence with a headache-inducing, " _you're not thaaat cute."_

 

 

Wonwoo chooses the latter to lose his shit over first.

 

 

"Oh hell no, hold up. I know you did not just insinuate that I'm not cute enough for a fuckin' _Blackberry Margarita_. Who the hell do you think you are?" Wonwoo is standing up now, with an accusatory finger jutting right at Mingyu's chest. _God damn boy, you firm. Does this guy work out? No wait stop, Wonwoo. You're angry._

 

 

"Listen, if 9 bucks out of however much you're making--which, quite frankly must be a lot judging by your sorry little Rolex Watch havin' ass-- isn't worth paying for _this_ ," Wonwoo uses his free hand to scan the entirety of his own body, head to toe, "Then I suggest you--"

 

 

"Wait wait wait, you've got it all wrong--"

 

 

Wonwoo is taken aback by Mingyu, whose hand is now wrapped around his wrist over the sleeve of his sweater. _Oh god, his hands are so big. He's so warm. This is nice. WAIT NO. Holy shit. Get it together, Wonwoo._

 

 

"You're cute, okay? In fact, you're the cutest person I've ever laid my eyes on. [Part of Wonwoo wants to cringe, but another, more prominent part of him forces out a completely involuntary, totally indiscernible noise from the back of his throat] You're worth all the Blackberry Margaritas in the world [Cue choking noise 2.0]." Mingyu's grip around Wonwoo's wrist slides down along the palm of his hand until he's holding onto his fingers, and Wonwoo is seriously considering those Pampers again. "I really didn't want it to come to this but, _fuck_ , between you and me..." Mingyu's eyes dart around the bar before leaning in close enough for Wonwoo to feel his breath on his neck, "I'm on a budget."

 

 

Wonwoo's face contorts. Does he laugh? Does he cry? What the fuck. "A budget? You're out here completely overdressed in a place like this offering to buy me a drink and you're telling me... you're on... a budget..."

 

 

Mingyu sighs and shifts around on his stool, grip loosening around Wonwoo's fingers. "How else would I have gotten your attention? Nobody would wanna fuck with a guy like me if my outfit made it obvious that I work at a joint like..." Mingyu's voice hushes to a whisper, " _like Bath & Body Works_. Which I, uh, which I do. But still. Suits give off a much better first impression."

 

 

Wonwoo's eyebrows furrow. "First of all, I know you're free to wear whatever you want and all but who the hell goes through all that trouble just to...," he exhales heavily, shaking his head before he can finish his own sentence and pulling away from Mingyu, "Second of all, why even bother asking to buy me a drink if you know damn well you're on a budget?"

 

 

Mingyu puts his hands up in defense. "Well shit, I didn't know you were gonna order a $9 drink! Literally who does that? Everyone knows 5 bucks is the maximum-- it's like... the unspoken general rule of thumb for drinking."

 

 

Wonwoo's lips purse. "... _Touché_."

 

 

The two of them sit in silence and an air of unbearable awkwardness falls over them. _Okay. So we're both in the wrong. Great. Now what?_

 

 

 _Clink_.

 

 

There, carefully set on the counter in front of the two is what looks to be like... a Blackberry Margarita?

 

 

"On the house," the bartender from before says with a curt nod, hands brushing off any invisible dust from his uniform's apron. "Any banter between a catfish and a gold digger is enough to spark my interest. Enjoy the rest of the night, gentlemen."

 

 

Neither of them can register the situation fast enough to muster any words of gratitude to the worker for his incredibly generous offer, much less for his shitty backhanded compliment, before he whisks himself away to tend to another couple at the other end of the bar.

 

 

Wonwoo looks back over at Mingyu and sighs heavily, an undeserving (but also not entirely reluctant) hand reaching for the new glass. "Hey, listen... Mingyu." The younger attempts to make eye contact through the black locks sweeping over his forehead. _What a puppy_. "At this point I really couldn't care less about what you're wearing. With a face like yours, I probably still would've wanted you to approach me even if you waltzed in here with weed socks tied around your waist. Okay maybe not that but you catch my drift."

 

 

Mingyu grins at the sudden unorthodox, though flattering, remark.

 

 

"Really?"

 

 

"Really," Wonwoo relays. "And for the record, I love Bath & Body Works. Your hand soaps are the shit."

 

 

Mingyu throws his head back with a hearty laugh, and the corner of Wonwoo's lips tug into a smirk. In the midst of it all, Mingyu reaches out to touch Wonwoo's thigh in the most innocent yet intimate of ways, and Wonwoo's smirk turns into a small gasp.

 

 

"So... we're cool?" Mingyu looks into Wonwoo's eyes for the nth time that night, with hope written all over his face that makes Wonwoo practically swoon.

 

 

"With the way you're gripping my leg like that? I think it's safe to say we're more than cool."

 

 

Mingyu flashes another one of his million dollar smiles and Wonwoo wonders why he ever had the audacity to blow up at him in the first place. Despite whatever just happened, he really is the whole package-- a sweet personality and a nice face. Wonwoo isn't one to deny any future Bath & Body Works discounts either.

 

\--

 

The two become bolder as the clock ticks on, hands roaming within personal boundaries along arms and thighs and backs as they open up more about themselves. Wonwoo is also content with his own slight buzz he's got going on, Blackberry Margarita long since finished.

 

 

"Hey..." The palm of one of Mingyu's hands is propping up his head by his chin, while the other is placed underneath Wonwoo's, thumb forming circles on the back of the older man's hand. "You think it's time we call it a night? And by night I mean... you wanna bring this over to my place?"

 

 

Wonwoo wastes no time in answering. "I thought you'd never ask."

 

\--

 

On their way to their respective cars, Mingyu laces their fingers together and Wonwoo can see him smiling even in the dead of night, with the only source of lighting being the dim street lights scattered throughout the parking lot. The pair stop in front of Wonwoo's car first, and as soon as the it's unlocked with a click of a button, Mingyu fishes for his phone from his suit pocket.

 

 

"Oh, who're you calling?" Wonwoo peers over at the other, curiosity getting the better of him as he watches Mingyu start dialing. Not to feed into some sort of lame etiquette, but as far as Wonwoo knows, perhaps going home with a man isn't exactly the most appropriate of times to be making any phone calls.

 

 

"Oh, y'know just letting my mom know I'll be bringing someone over so she has time to go over to my aunt's place."

 

 

Wonwoo inhales sharply. _Oh. Oh sweet Jesus._

 

\--

 

There was always something about treating himself to the occasional beer (or two) at his local bar that Wonwoo really came to appreciate. Maybe it was because it gave him a chance to wind down after a long week. Or maybe, just maybe, it was the way he could use the amount of alcohol in his system as a shoddy excuse to deliberately throw away any ounce of dignity he ever had on one particular Saturday night, to be fucked by the cutest, most unexpected momma's boy he's ever met and pretend like he wasn't totally ashamed of the fact that they performed every position in the book on some sweet old lady's decorative, hand-sewn pillows.

 

 

But hey, at least Wonwoo can say he's tried the Blackberry Margarita.

**Author's Note:**

> 1) im sorry  
> 2) bath & body works' hand soaps really are the shit  
> 3) im sorry  
> 4) i dont even drink  
> 5) im so fucking sorry
> 
> this one's for you, ***. you know who you are.


End file.
